The new issue of Amplitude spotlights Beeyonder, an amputee-owned startup that offers live, interactive virtual tours of iconic locations all over the world. Designed specifically with the needs of adaptive travelers in mind, the company lets you visit destinations that otherwise wouldn’t be accessible to many (perhaps most) amputees.
We didn’t have space in the print edition to convey the breadth and variety of tours Beeyonder offers. That would take pages and pages—the company lists 350+ virtual travel experiences, spread across all seven continents. We picked out ten that really caught our fancy, but your tastes undoubtedly vary. For a full list, visit Beeyonder’s website at https://beeyonder.com/experiences.
THE BEATLES IN SWINGING LONDON
Maybe we’re a little too jazzed for the new Let it Be documentary that’s due out later this year, but when we saw this tour includes a stop at the Apple Corps building—where the Fabs played their famous rooftop concert in 1969—we instantly bookmarked it. Led by the author of Guide to the Beatles’ London.
Cost: Group tour, $14/person; private tour, $99 to $150 depending on number of guests
Duration: 90 minutes
Link: beeyonder.com/experiences/beatles-in-swinging-london
KOALA DISCOVERY WALK
This is one of the more unpredictable offerings at Beeyonder. You’re off to find wild koalas in their natural habitat, so every experience is different, and surprises are highly likely. Tour guide Wendy Bithell, aka “the koala whisperer,” operates one of Australia’s leading ecotourism companies.
Cost: Group tour, $30/person; private tour, $200 total for up to 20 guests
Duration: 60 minutes
Link: beeyonder.com/experiences/koala-discovery-walk
NELSON MANDELA PRISON HOUSE
Beeyonder has been granted exclusive access to Drakenstein Prison, where Mandela spent the last 14 months of his 27-year-long incarceration. As you move from room to room, you’ll get the full, incredible story of Mandela’s journey from prisoner to president. You’ll also glimpse the historic setting in which his final release was negotiated and the basis of South African’s new, post-apartheid government was conceived.
Cost: Group tour, $150/person; private tour, $400 total for up to 20 guests
Duration: 90 to 120 minutes
Link: beeyonder.com/experiences/from-prisoner-to-president
SINGAPORE BOTANIC GARDENS
This 162-year-old shrine houses some of the world’s rarest and most exotic plant life. Its collection of orchids numbers more than 1000 species, and the grounds also include a rainforest, ginger garden, lakes, waterfalls, and a sundial garden. The crowd at TripAdvisor has ranked this as the top park attraction in Asia for a number of years.
Cost: Private tour, $130 total for up to 10 guests
Duration: 60 minutes
Link: beeyonder.com/experiences/live-from-singapores-botanic-gardens
USHUAIA: SOUTHERNMOST CITY IN THE WORLD
Way down at the tip of South America, Ushuaia is only about 650 miles from Antarctica. Its inhabitants include about 57,000 Argentinians and an undetermined number of penguins. Tour guide Barbara Avalos drives you all over town, then invites you into her home for a virtual serving of Maté tea.
Cost: Group tour, $25/person; private tour, $150 total for up to 10 guests
Duration: 90 minutes
Link: beeyonder.com/experiences/discovering-ushuaia-the-southernmost-city-in-the-world
IRELAND CASTLES TOUR
This popular tour takes place every day at 5 pm Eastern. You’ll visit three castles that capture the atmosphere and magic of the Irish landscape, while illustrating how Norman stonemasonry and engineering influenced the fortified redoubts of the British Isles. The itinerary includes a stop at Blarney Castle, home of the Blarney Stone.
Cost: Group tour, $19/person; private tour, $320 total for up to 20 guests
Duration: 75 minutes
Link: beeyonder.com/experiences/ireland-castles-ireland-virtual-tour
TERRACOTTA WARRIOR MUSEUM
When China’s first emperor died about 2300 years ago, he was buried with an entire army of stone soldiers. Unearthed in 1974, this posthumous horde includes more than 8,000 sculpted foot soldiers, 150 mounted warriors, 130 chariots, and an entourage of administrators and support personnel. They’re all still at their posts outside Xi’an, defending the emperor Qin Shi Huang in the afterlife.
Cost: Group tour, $30/person; private tour, $300 total for up to 10 guests
Duration: 90 minutes
Link: beeyonder.com/experiences/the-terracotta-warriorssleeping-legion
WORLD OF THE VIKINGS
When they weren’t busy warring, exploring, and braving the icy northern seas, the Vikings were a pretty industrious and down-to-earth bunch of folks. Get the flavor of their day-to-day life at Njardarheimr, a faithfully recreated Viking village in western Norway. The scenery’s gorgeous, and the costumes, technology, lifeways, and, crafts are true to Norse culture circa 1000 AD.
Cost: Group tour, $15 to $60/person, depending on group size; private tour, $199 total for up to 100 guests
Duration: 60 minutes
Link: beeyonder.com/experiences/explore-the-world-of-nordic-people-in-the-viking-valley
STREETS OF NAIROBI
Here’s a travel opportunity you don’t get every day. A reformed Kenyan gangster will lead you through one of Nairobi’s toughest neighborhoods, narrating their personal journey of redemption. You’ll learn the harsh realities (as well as the ingenuity) of a childhood spent surviving on the streets, and you’ll be inspired by how these hard-luck kids matured into social entrepreneurs who are working to make life better for kids today.
Cost: Private tours, from $69 to $299 depending on the number of guests
Duration: 60 minutes
Link: beeyonder.com/experiences/nairobi-through-the-eyes-of-a-street-child-virtual-tour
MACCU PICCHU LIVE
This extraordinary city in the sky is on many a bucket list, but access is limited and getting there in person is arduous (not to mention expensive). This tour lets you explore the ancient Incan sanctuary easily and affordably, via a live, interactive tour led by a knowledgeable guide.
Cost: Private tours, $364 total for up to 10 guests
Duration: 60 minutes
Link: beeyonder.com/experiences/explore-machu-picchu-live-virtual-tour